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Saturday January 19, 2013 8:29 AM

GADSDEN, ALA. — James Hood, one of the first blacks to enroll at the University of Alabama
50 years ago, defying then-Gov. George Wallace’s pledge to block integration of public schools,
died on Thursday of natural causes.

Hood, 70, died in his hometown of Gadsden, according to his obituary.

Hood and Vivian Malone were the first African-Americans to register to attend the all-white
state university and did so over the objections of Wallace, known for his resistance to the U.S.
civil-rights movement.